1. Extremely Fine-Grained Observations of Atmospheric Gasses 1 Water vapor measurements from the VCSEL hygrometer Garnet Abrams October 7, 2011

2. Outline  Project, affiliations, and motivations  Instrumentation  Water vapor-climate science and feedbacks  Sampling - flight paths and patterns  Preliminary Results 2

3. Acronyms 3  National Science Foundation and National Center for Atmospheric Research funded operation  HIPPO – Highly Instrumented Aerial Platform for Environmental Research (HIAPER) Pole-to-Pole Observations  A series of 5 pole-to-pole flights (N. Pole to S. Pole and back)  Capture each season – January (1), November (II), March-April (III), June (IV), August-September (V),  Instruments on board  Multiple Enclosure Devise for Unfractioned Sampling of Air | MEDUSA  O2, CO2, Ar/N2, 13CO2, C18O16O  Whole Air Sampler | WAS  CFCs, HCFCs, HFCs, Solvents, Methyl Halides, Organic Nitrates, Non-Methane Hydrocarbons, Perflourocarbons; See the comprehensive list of chemical species  Quantum Cascade Laser System | QCLS  CO2, CO, CH4, N2O

4. Instrument – VCSEL Hygrometer 4  Operates at 1854 nm  25 Hz readings  Temperature and pressure probes  Beam makes 25 passes, heaters beneath mirrors  Sits outside the boundary layer of the plane  The only in-situ water vapor instrument on the flight

5. Water Vapor in the Atmosphere  Water vapor has 4 times the radiative forcing of CO 2, however considered a feedback, not anthropogenic source  The warmer the atmosphere, the more water if can hold...  Clouds, depending upon their height, color, and time of day can insulate and absorb or reflect solar energy  Clouds pose difficulty for modelers  Water vapor is sticky, making it difficult to measure 5 http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/lookingatearth/warmer_humidity.html CLOUDS?

6. Research Flights 6

7. Preliminary Results 7  Temporal differences just between the beginning and end of June.  Lack of profiling in Southern Pacific on return flight  Sampling avoids extreme convection

8. Special Thanks 8  I would like to extend a special thanks to Professor Mark Zondlo, Minghui Diao, and the Atmospheric Chemistry Lab  GV crew and NCAR researchers